Shoe cleaning and polishing device.



S. SZARKA.

SHOE CLEANING AND POLISHING DEVICE.

AIPLIOATION FILED 111111.11A 1914.

1,1 1 9,201 Patented Dec. 1, 1914.

Z W 11W THE NORRIS PETERS CO Plmm LITQILL. \VASHINUIONI D. Lv

llih lll) talllhilllllti STEPHEN SZARKA, (1F BRANTIEORD, ONTARIO, CANADA.

SHOE CLEANING AND POLISHING DEVICE.

Specification Burner P t n Patented Dee. l, 1914:.

Application filed March 9, 1914. Serial No. 823,487.

til hoe (,l

which the ollowing is a specification.

'jlhis invention relates to new and useful improvements in shoe cleaning and polishing devices.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a machine readily operable by the user thereof or by a servant if desired to clean and polish the shoes of the wearer with extreme rapidity and in a high degree of elliciency.

A further object is to provide a cabinet machine adapted to have the foot of the customer readilypositioned therein for contacting manually operable brushing and cleaning devices of different degrees of coarseness under the actuation of the cus tomer or a servant.

A further object is to provide a portable cabinet having a dirt receptacle for receiving the accumulations from a plurality of graded shoe cleaning brushes journaled therein and manually operable through a rack and pinions which are actuated by the customer or a servant through a reciprocating hand lever.

With these general objects in view and others that will appear as the nature of the invention better understood, the same consis s in the novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings tlorming a part of this application and in which like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views :-Figure 1 is a plan view of the device. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof partly in vertical section through the gear case upon line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view upon line 33 of Fig. 1.

Referring more in detail to the draw lugs, the numeral 10 designates a cabinet which is substantially rectangular in cross section and provided with a sliding drawer 11 in the bottom thereof and adapted to receive the dirt from the shoes which are cleaned and polished in the cabinet by means of the brushes The said brushes are graded in degrees of coarseness, the lower brush being the coarser while the top brush is liner or softer and especially adapted as a finishing or polishing medium. The axles 13 of said brushes are trunnioned through the opposite sides ll: of the cabinet and at one side thereof are extended and have meshing gears lfi rigidly secured thereon. 'lhc said gears decrease in size from the top to the bottom gear while the latter is in mesh with the teeth of a longitudinally slidable rack 16 which is mounted upon a headed pin 17 extending through a longitudinal slot 18 of said rack. A hand operating lever 15) is pivoted as at 30 to one of the cabinet sides lil: and has its lower end pivoted by the belt or pin 21 with an end of the rack lb. The lever 15) is resiliently secured to the adjacent side of the cabinet by means of a coil spring 22.

The rear side of the cabinet is closed by the wall 25 while the forward inclined side is open substantially the entire length and provided with inwardly slanting cross strips 21L positioned adjacent each of the brushes and adapted for serviceably positioning the shoe of a customer in operative contact with the desired one of the brushes, a portion of such a shoe being shown at 25 in dotted lines in Fig. 3.

A gear casing 30 is secured to the side of the cabinet and incloses the pinions 15 while said casing is broken away at the bottom thereof as shown in Fig. 1 to allow the lower pinion to extend exterior-1y of the casing to mesh with the teeth of the rack 16. It will be seen that the inclined upper face of the sides 32 of the drawer 11 abuts the under surface of the lower shoe rest when the drawer is completely closed and thus prevents any escape of the contents of the drawer. It will also be seen that the spring 22 is adapted to normally position the operating lever 19 vertically or if desired may normally position the same to the best ad vantage for grasping by the patrons or proprietor of the cabinet when employed in the business of shoe cleaning and polishing.

The complete operation of the device will now be apparent, the shoe being positioned upon the lower strip 24-, the customer or another party if desired reciprocatos the operating lever 19 thus imparting a longitudinal sliding movement to the rack 16 and whereby all of the gears 15 and their axles 13 as well as the brushes 12 are revolved in alternating directions and the lower or coarser brush having operated upon the shoe, the latter is placed successively in contact with the two upper brushes and thoroughly cleaned and polished while all dirt or foreign matter is precipitated into the base drawer 11 and easily removable there from while the dust incident to the operation is prevented from escaping by means of the inclosing cabinet.

While the forms of the invention herein shown and described are what are believed to be preferable embodiments thereof, it is nevertheless to be understood that minor changes may be made in the form, proportion and details of construction without departing from the spirit and scope of'the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

WVhat is claimed as new is I 1. A device of the class described comprising an inclosing cabinet having an inclined open front, a dirt receiving drawer removably positioned in the base of the cabinet, a plurality of brushes of different degrees of coarseness journaled in the opposite sides of said cabinet, foot rest strips secured at the front of said cabinet adjacent each brush and extending 0bliquely inward, pinions upon adjacent ends in front of the rear edge of the back of the cabinet.

2. The combination with a cabinet having an open inclined front portion, oblique foot-- rest strips arranged at the front of the cabinet and secured to the side Walls of the latter, rotary brushes within the cabinet adjacent to said foot-rests, and a drawer bep 1 low said brushes having an inclined upper edge to engage the lower one of said rests.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SZARKA.

Witnesses LOUIS S rANoLER, C. MILBURN.

Copies of this uatent mav be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

